The Toy Industry Foundation (TIF) has announced a year-long sponsorship opportunity that would allow a single toy company to help children in need throughout next year. The special donor who participates in the Adopt-the-Pig sponsorship program by contributing $10,000, tax-deductible, to TIF’s Toy Bank will impact one million children in need next year.

Sponsorship funds will fuel the work of The Toy Bank program next year and help TIF engage the public. The sponsor company will be recognized through various intra-industry print and online publications, including TIF’s booth at the 111th American International Toy Fair.

Any company that is interested in this sponsorship opportunity or learning more about other recognition opportunities may contact TIF at (646) 454-5581 by October 30.

Toy industry stakeholders who would like to help bring the power of play to children in need are invited to join the Toy Industry Foundation’s (TIF) Leaders Circle giving program by annually donating to TIF. The Leaders Circle raises more than 10 percent of TIF’s annual budget, making it a critical source of funds for core toy donation and grant programs. Currently, the Leaders Circle includes approximately 100 members, and TIF hopes to see it expand in order to keep pace with TIF’s growing toy donation and grant-making activities.

The Toy Industry Foundation (TIF)’s Summer Toy Drive has collected more than 896,000 toys for children. Due to donations from 92 toy companies, TIF’s Toy Bank received more than four times as many toys as last summer. This year’s contributions valued at more than $4.5 million.

Toy distributions kicked off on June 20 with a wild safari-themed giveaway at the Ronald McDonald House in New York City for pediatric cancer patients and their families.

The season’s toy giveaways continued with various events hosted by Play Comforts, TIF’s program for military families in partnership with Boys and Girls Clubs of America Military Services. More than a dozen U.S. military bases received toys throughout the summer months.

In July, TIF and partner CASA for Children held events in New Jersey and Indiana for children in foster care, and on August 1, TIF celebrated The Toy Bank’s 10th anniversary with the first 50 state toy giveaway, Toys Across America. With the help of 68 charities and logistics partner Kids in Distressed Situations, TIF distributed toys and games to children in all 50 states on a single day.

In celebration of the 10th anniversary of The Toy Bank, the Foundation teamed up with partner Kids in Distressed Situations (K.I.D.S.) to host Toys Across America, the first toy distribution to bring playthings to children in all 50 states within a single day. The donated Pillow Pets went to kids in 25 states; Peaceable Kingdom’s sticker sets were donated to children’s charities in four states. A total of 36 generous toy companies participated in the initiative, which brought toys to more than half a million children in need.

The Toy Industry Foundation (TIF) and its Toy Bank distributed more than 500,000 new toys and games to children in need in all 50 states on a single day on August 1. Dubbed Toys Across America, this special day of toys, play, and fun celebrated the 10th anniversary of The Toy Bank, a program that collects new toys from donor toy companies and delivers them through a network of charities serving kids and families.

An interactive map on the Toys Across America website—along with photos, videos, and live updates on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube—showed the progress as toys were distributed in each state and Washington, D.C. The webpage included details about the charities served (name, city, and state), participating toy companies, and special festive events in Braddock, Penn., Dallas, Los Angeles, and New York City.

In the last decade, The Toy Bank has delivered more than 10 million toys valued at more than $85 million to children who are sick, impoverished, in the foster care system, living through natural disasters, enduring life on a military base, or otherwise in need.

The Toy Bank is the signature program of TIF, the philanthropic organization representing the North American toy industry. Throughout the year, toy companies and retailers donate new toys to the program. The Toy Bank’s logistics partner, Kids in Distressed Situations, then distributes the toys through its nationwide network of child-focused charities. Three dozen toy donor companies joined with sponsors Funrise and Bandai America Inc. to make Toys Across America possible.

The Toy Industry Foundation (TIF) is actively collecting toys, books, games, plush, action figures, and other playthings to support families affected by the recent Oklahoma tornado.

Winds exceeding 200 mph tore through suburbs of Oklahoma City, destroying communities and leaving homes and schools in piles of debris. While search and rescue efforts are winding down, families will soon need to rebuild their homes and replace what was lost in the storm. Donations of new books, toys, and other soothing playthings will help families restore their lives.

The TIF is asking manufacturers, retailers, and licensors in the industry to donate product to The Toy Bank–TIF’s signature program–in support of the communities damaged by the storm. With the assistance of local community charities in The Toy Bank’s network and TIF logistics partner Kids in Distressed Situations, donations from the toy industry will be given directly to families in need.

The event was held as part of the joint TIF /BGCA Play Comforts program – the first-ever national toy distribution initiative to serve every branch of the U.S. military. Through Play Comforts, toys and games donated by caring toy companies are delivered on an annual basis to families on dozens of U.S. military installations at home and abroad. Now in its fourth year of operation, the program has provided more than $3.5 million in toys for children of military families.

National CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) Association and the Toy Industry Foundation have partnered at the national level to provide toys and increase the number of trained CASA volunteers to benefit children in the foster care system. The Toy Industry Foundation will donate more than 25,000 toys to CASA this year. The launch of this partnership will take place at the Toy Industry Foundation’s Play Your Part volunteer event on April 5 in Los Angeles.

National CASA, a network of 946 community based programs that recruit, train, and support citizen-volunteers to advocate for the best interests of abused and neglected children in courtrooms and communities, will be working with CASA programs across the country to identify and distribute the donated toys to children in the foster care system.

Former foster youth, CASA volunteers, and special guests will share their personal stories at Play Your Part, joining more than 100 Toy Industry Foundation volunteers from Southern California toy companies to package and sort more than 16,000 toys for local foster youth. Walmart is donating the use of two tractor-trailers to ship toys to destinations throughout Southern California, and World Vision has donated the space for the event. Mattel, Leapfrog Enterprises, Funrise Toy Corporation, and Women in Toys are additional event sponsors.

Families stationed at Naval Base Coronado were joined by marine families from nearby Camp Pendleton for a fun-filled day of play, crafts, entertainment, and food. The children were gifted with brand new toys and games donated by toy manufacturers from across the nation.

The event was the first of many toy giveaways to be held on military bases this yearas part of the joint TIF/BGCA Play Comforts program–the first-ever national toy distribution program to serve every branch of the military. Now in its fourth year of operation, the program has provided more than $3.5 million in toys for children residing on U.S. military bases.

New Products

Marvel’s Ant-Man is still going strong in theaters, and so is Disney Consumer Products’ (DCP) and Marvel‘s Ant-Man product collection. The lineup includes costumes, construction sets, action figures, and more from licensees such as Hasbro, LEGO, Funko, Hot Wheels, Rubie’s Costume Co., and Uncle Milton.

Skechers USA Inc. has partnered with Jakks Pacific Inc. to launch a new line of dolls based on Skechers’ popular Twinkle Toes character. The initial launch includes four unique dolls that stand 6.5 inches in height, and are dressed in colorful, fashion-forward outfits and light-up Skechers Twinkle Toes shoes.

LeapFrog Enterprises Inc. will release three new preschool toys—the Number Lovin’ Oven and Scout’s Build & Discover Tool Set, which offer pretend play experiences that teach math and measurement, respectively—and the Word Whammer, a phonics game that prepares children for kindergarten in an active way.

Now available from VTech, Flipsies combine traditional role play with collectible dolls and accessories, as well as VTech’s proprietary MagicPoint interactive technology. The line offers a variety of ways to play and has eight introductory themes that encourage girls to be anything they want to be, whether it’s a doctor, a marine biologist, a teacher, [...]

Merchantwise, ITV Studios Global Entertainment’s appointed licensing agency in Australia, has announced strong toy and DVD sales, as well as a host of new licensing and retail partners, for the TV series Thunderbirds Are Go in Australia.